


water colors

by tongue_or_pen



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, New Year's Eve, New Years, and not angst, in which i indulge myself with larry fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-11
Updated: 2013-11-11
Packaged: 2018-01-01 04:38:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1040428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tongue_or_pen/pseuds/tongue_or_pen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's New Years. Louis and Harry watch the 365 days come to a close, hands tightly gripping each other, as their lives continue to spin on recklessly.</p>
            </blockquote>





	water colors

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Quicksand_Boulevard](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quicksand_Boulevard/gifts).



> It's New Years. Louis and Harry watch the 365 days come to a close, hands tightly gripping each other, as their lives continue to spin on recklessly.
> 
> ✶✶✶
> 
> After 6 months, I finally got this dusty fanfic out from its cave and finished it. ^^'
> 
> I was originally planning on posting it on New Years since it was already this late. But then I thought, hey why not?
> 
> Anyways, my first fanfiction ever published, ever, and my first fanfiction for this fandom.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> (Also, Dedicated to my dear Tallie as a late birthday gift. I hope you'll forgive me for giving it to you this late)

_“For last year's words belong to last year's language_  
 _And next year's words await another voice.”_  

                                                                              _-T.S. Eliot_

 

“Hey love.”

Harry’s low voice softly pierces the bustling noises of the party members’ crowd. He sidles up to Louis, two beer glasses in his hand, gripped tightly so as to prevent any liquid from overflowing as he passes one of them to him.

Louis offers him a small smile and a quiet ‘thanks’, tipping his head back to chug down some of the auburn liquid. The alcohol rushes through him, curling in a satisfying warmth in his stomach; the pounding music strumming and pulsating through his veins and making his head dizzy with contentedness, as he leans against the balcony ledge.

Wrapping his non-holding glass arm around Harry’s waist, he lets out a soft, tingling giggle. One part because of the dizzying rush filling his body and making his heart beat stronger than ever, and another part because he was allowed to be in this inebriated state with the love of his life curled into his side. He was never one to really worry about the world, but when the world came to mean a significant amount of millions watching his every move, he thought that wariness was warranted.

All around, there were people dancing in a jagged manner, guzzling down overflowing alcohol, some hiding in the small strips of shadow to latch on to another party member, a crude re-enactment of temporary love (some called that love, but Louis laughed at the masked lust), and others to conduct themselves in short sticks of temporary forgetfulness, tugged and passed between lips after lips, dyed bloody crimson by the combined simmering heat of sweaty bodies and throat-scalding drinks.

Louis didn’t know when his life broke free into independence and decided it was entitled to change axes from its original course. To just switch over to another gravitational state not marked on his pre-ordained map of so-called fate. One so large and so intricate that he would find himself in a state of persistent drowning. A sensation so overwhelming he didn’t even know where he himself was on most days. A gravitational force so warm and loving, by the name of Harry.

Loving him was not entirely unlike an accidental truth. Not quite fitting into the humans’ set book of definitions. Not quite like the humans’ designation of specific series of lines connecting various stars, tracing out constellations, pointing out what they considered to be tangible and evident proof. Instead, they were like clouds drifting through the skies on a lazy summer afternoon, their shapes shifting to and thro, and tickling the immense boundaries of the human mind, but never quite staying in a definite form.

It was scary, hell it was terrifying to the point he’d have doubts about their relationship. From the fans and the paparazzi watching their every move, to the pressure put on them, to their management, not to mention the uncertain and volatile life of a celebrity.  Their love was a rollercoaster of ups and downs, from euphoric inspiration to petrifying uncertainty. Yet through it all, they both remained steady for each, steady in their resolution to pursue and persist in their relationship. No matter if they had to conquer their own dragons to do so, at the end of the day it would always come to mean the god-given right to tangle themselves into the other’s secure arms.

To other people, their bright smiles outshined everyone else’s. Of course, they were living the dream life that anyone would want, and that clearly reflected in the certain poise they held and happiness they exuded. But underneath all that, underneath the rusty show of teeth, they held cracks and bruises, wisps of sadness that had passed and curled around their limbs and flesh and organs. A certain weariness that became all too pronounced on the days where it became too much. Where the repetitive lies laid out in black-stained ink in magazines or the brightly colored photos of a certain couple (wrongwrongwrong would echo his heart) would weigh them down until they tripped and crashed into desperation. A nasty place where hopelessness clung to them like thick, chunky mud, dragging them downwards, downwards, downwards…

They thrived in a constant world of two, of a soft and fragile hope for an uncertain future. That’s the kind of hope that made up the heroes of the fairytales, but Louis was ascertained that their love was no fairytale. Only a sad and bone-wearied story of two boys who came to love each other in the most marvelously unfortunate situation.

And sometimes, the world liked to entangle him and choke him until his heart bled the blues amongst the scattered sheets. Despite what the poems and the novels and the T.V. shows and movies stated, love was not easy. It was never easy, not for them. They had had their fair share of breakdown, of moments where the pressure of an ashen world almost tipped them off the edge and made them resign… almost. They always managed to bring themselves back up, of course, or they wouldn’t be where they were today. But the scars on the soul they carried would never quite disappear, not until they were released from the dented cage they rested in. Like birds, they sang for passion and joy. They sang a song of five for the world. But underneath the generic written lyrics and the pop composed music, was a sad, sweet song resonating from the couple’s torn and wounded, but synchronized beating, hearts.

It was a song that they’d sing alone, one that still had no name. But as long as they had each other, they’d sing it out silently.

They had been young, burning stunningly in tempo under the spotlight. It had been too much, yet in a sense, not enough as well. Under the late nights and with heart brimmed to a full, they exchanged whispers, they had made a promise. From then on, it had been them 5 against the world.

(It’s not until much later that they would learn that it had always been HarryandLouis against the world)

The world spun fasterfasterfaster, time barely holding up the weight of their stardom. Midnight concerts, stadiums filled up to the brim with chanting fans, travelling the world, meeting new people, and old people, and known people- And at the center they stood, brilliant and blazing?

If they truly were stars, than Louis preferred to imagine they had been lost fallen stars, who had clumsily found their way to a constellation of five, of them. HarryandLouis was the blazing duo that hid beneath the blanket of darkness, they’d shine for each other and they’d burn through each other. Because at the end of the day, they were two pieces of carbon dioxide glitter that was a degree too hot.

Suddenly, he felt something poke at the corner of his lips. Dazed, Louis snapped out of his thought, directing his attention to the tall curly-haired boy on his right, the one watching him with mirthful eyes and an endearing smile.

“Thought I had lost you there for a minute, Boo,” Harry chuckled, the sly twinkling in his eyes softening to a more enamored gaze.

Louis let out a silent bark of laughter, tilting his head back to catch a better view of the night sky.

“Do you ever wonder where we’ll be in a few years?” Louis murmured, afraid to break the gentle atmosphere starting to droop over them. He turned to Harry, hands grasping his beige sweater tightly to keep them close-knit.

Swinging his arm over Louis’ shoulder, Harry hummed in a pleased tone, warmth radiating onto his left side and encompassing him completely.

Standing next to his lover, the chattering of the crowds and the booming music became nothing else than faded background music.

Harry hummed, twirling his glass around in his poised right hand to slosh the somber liquid in it about.

The night city seemed to be almost alive, under the creeping hour of New Year. Pedestrians were laughing about, crowding around the packed pubs in an attempt to join in the festivities. Each harsh glare of the passing cars’ headlights illuminated the pensive boy’s ivy eyes, giving him a more definite look, almost older.

The world liked to tempt the bounded rules, toying with them and barely brushing the borders. Harry may only be freshly nineteen, but the events that had been put into motion had worn him down emotionally and psychologically. Until his inner turmoil and festering bled onto his skin into the lean sharp figure he was today.

“Sometimes,” Harry started, pausing to clear his throat before continuing, “We’re swept off our feet so often nowadays, that I usually don’t have _enough_ undisturbed time to let my thoughts wonder.”

Louis nodded slowly in agreement. He couldn’t remember a time where he had had a moment of his own to think of anything else than about the upcoming events in his life. But if he searched hard enough, he could make out the faintly blurry memories of his young self, lying in bed at night with stars in his eyes as he wished and desired for the possibility to achieve his dreams.

“But,” Harry continued, a wide grin stretching across his face, “I’d like to think that wherever we’ll be in the future, we’ll still be right next to each other.”

The short boy let out a burst of laughter, mockingly punching the other boy in his shoulder, cursing him with the remark of “you sap!” before stifling his laughter with a sweet kiss to the boy’s left cheek.

Louis liked to think Harry was the sun. No, he was pretty sure Harry _was_ the sun. Every time his favorite boy entered the room, it was like standing next to a furnace, the heat immediately warming the room and softening the edges until everybody was relaxed and giggling with each other. For Louis, Harry’s smiles were enough for him to feel the warmth rush through his body, tinting his cheeks crimson and curling up in his stomach in a satisfied purr, warming his entire being inside and out until his vision was narrowed down to that single being, bursting with life and luminousness. If Harry was the sun, than Louis was pretty sure he was the closest planet orbiting around him and subjugated by his gravitational pull and attraction.

Closing his eyes, Louis let out a quiet sigh, watching his breath pass through the cold air in soft wisps.

Behind them, the crowd of partygoers was becoming more and more agitated as the time to New Year’s crawled closer.

“Do you have a wish for the New Year,” he quietly asked, shuffling a bit to warm himself up, before pressing himself further into his lover’s side.

Harry let his gaze traverse the smaller boy’s content face, finding his rosy cheeks quiet adorable, before letting his eyes return to the city below them. _Fame? Fortune? True Love?_ He had had the entire world’s cliché wishes come true, even true love, which had appeared in the form of a petite and loud boyish form. His family was happy, and so were his friends. As far as he was concerned, all the aspects of his life converged into complete exaltation. Even if his international status warranted its ups and downs, he could truly say he was happy, for the first time in his nineteen years of existence.

But when his contemplating gaze crossed the curious look of Louis, he thought that maybe he had one more wish to ask for.

“So?” Louis insisted. He opened his mouth to continue the interrogation but was cut off by the ear-splitting cheers of the rambunctious party crowd.

“30 seconds away from next year! Who’s ready for the countdown!” one wild party member yelled. The rest of the partygoers echoed their approval with applause and laughter, before their voices mingled into one long stream of chanting voices.

Harry turned towards Louis, grabbing his arms and bringing him forward until they were chest to chest.

“Don’t know about you, but I quite fancy beginning the year with a kiss.” He cheekily said, dimples appearing on both cheeks as he gave Louis his brightest grin.

Louis chuckled, bringing his arms up and around Harry’s neck. Harry instinctively curled his own arms around Louis’ waist, softly stroking the skin through the wool fabric.

Behind them, the crowd was passionately counting down, their voices blurring in the background with chants of: “20… 19… 18…”

Their gazes locked with each other, ivy green clashing with watery blue. Both boys housing a matching smile on their faces as they leaned in closer, forehead resting against forehead.

“I’d like to go to Arizona next year” the taller boy said thoughtfully. Louis smiled back wistfully in response.

“That’s too lame for a New Year’s wish, Haz” he chuckled.

“Hey!”

15… 14… 13…

“You know,” Harry murmured softly, nose pressed into the other boy’s caramel hair, “I can think of one particular wish.”

“Only one?” Louis replied, eyebrows raised in curiosity.

“Mhm…” the taller lad mumbled back.

11… 10… 9…

Louis looked on. Remembering the once cheeky sixteen years old with stars in his eyes and heart on his sleeve. He might have grown taller than him, all broad shoulder and gangly limbs and bright heart- But he was still his sweet boy.

“What do you wish for next year then, Haz?” Louis asked quietly, gaze burning into the other boy’s eyes.

7…6…5…

Harry looked down at Louis, his own gaze holding an indiscernible swirl of emotions.

“Louis Tomlinson,” he started.

Louis’ eyes widened, unsure of what that serious tone held in the spoken words meant.

“Will you—”

3…2…1…

“Be mine, and mine forever?”

And as 0 left the mouths of the partiers, the city rose up in loud, resonating cheers. Fireworks burst overhead, and the whole population could be heard cheering and wishing each other a good year. But none of that mattered, as Louis stood, rooted to his spot, as Harry looked on with nervousness and want.

The world was spinning around him, Louis was sure, because he felt a sick sensation of vertigo as his disbelief clinged to him. He was falling, falling, falling, deeper into those intense eyes, adrenalin beginning to rush into his veins and make his body tremble.

He was happy, no, exalted. Or more than that, elated. No, even that was not strong enough a word for this sensation.

He brought his quivering hands up, resting one of them on either side of Harry’s face.

One final blink breath and he surged forward, embracing Harry and kissing him deeply.

Pulling back, Harry noticed the tears falling from the other boy’s glistening eyes.

“Yes,” Louis laughed brokenly, his throat choked up in too many emotions, “God yes, Harry!”

The lips of the two soul mates met once again, and pressed together in a warm loving kiss. The cars were honking and people were running and shouting down below. But none of that mattered as Louis and Harry clung tightly to each other, bodies melded so closely that no outside would be able to distinguish where one began and the other ended. Up above the lively city, they were lost together. Lost in a world of solely them, of warmth and affection, burning like crashing cars—

As the music began thumping loudly again, the two boys pulled back slightly, but still closely embracing one another.

“Happy New Year, Boo,” Harry replied, bringing up a hand to gently brush the strands of Louis’ hair out of his eyes.

“Happy New Year, Curly,” Louis grinned wobbly, pure love thrumming through his veins, replacing the earlier rush of alcohol.

The world kept turning, and time kept on lingering on. Yes, it was an accidental truth, of Harry’s warming palms from anchoring him to reality. Breathing him in and then out again.  They had synchronized their breathing together so they wouldn’t have to be alone.

 And gazing into Harry’s slow simmering eyes, Louis decided he wasn’t afraid to fall as long as he had Harry to fall for.

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr:
> 
> one direction tumblr: cuddlesomeharry.tumblr.com


End file.
